25 or 6 to 4 by Chicago. What does it mean?

Blood, Sweat, & Tears, and then Chicago (who sprung up in the wake of the success of B,S,&T), were really a Godsend for the guys playing horn in the High School marching band. Historically considered squares/nerds, it was suddenly okay to be a trumpet or trombone player. Saxes were different, always a cool Rock ’n’ Roll/Jump Blues instrument.

Loomisjohnson, just wish to opine on your comment "terry kath is sort of an overlooked ace on guitar".  Kath was, and still is considered one of the great guitar prodigies of rock music.  He was the heart and soul of Chicago's drive.  Jimi Hendrix himself after a show reportedly said that Kath was better than him (true story, who knows?).  Dozens of articles over the years with titles like "most underrated guitarist", "greatest guitar player you never heard" etc. attest to the respect Kath received and so rightly deserved.  Much like the Allman Brothers I feel Chicago died along with Terry Kath although the ABB recovered more completely over time.  While Cetera is an outstanding bassist and Lamm's keyboard skills are without question I have always felt both would have been better off writing for Barry Manilow once Kath's intensity was taken from Chicago.  So to sum up, while I am with you 100% on "guitar ace", not so much on "overlooked" unless we stipulate "among those who are only aware of music after 1978".  Anyway, thanks for mentioning him.  The fact he is still being discussed 35 years after a way too short career shows his true impact.  

BTW, I have downloaded the recent Steve Wilson remix and it does sound mighty fine in my car.  I have to wait for my soundcard to come back from repair to listen on my home system and compare it to my vinyl original.

The thing about "horn bands" is that, since the horn players are full members of the band, it is apparently felt that they must play on every song, whether or not the song benefits from them doing so. Whereas The Beatles in their later years would occasionally have a song part played by a horn (Penny Lane, Savoy Truffle, etc.) for a musical reason, horn bands have to give the horn players something to play on every song. I don't care for that concept. I felt the same way about the string players in ELO. It's putting the band members before the music itself, rather common in Rock music, imo.

joe crowe, you're better informed than me, so i appreciate your input. what i'm trying to convey is that unlike the excrable bs&t, the early chicago was kind of interesting and punk--the horns were sort of a disciplined counterpart to the wild guitar and bass. plus the singers were sort of off-key-but-good in a white guy with soul sort of way.

The Terry Kath years were pivotal for this band. We music lovers are left w/ a treaure of catalog material. CTA, specifically, is one of the most important debut albums of the Rock era.